Manila, Singapore and now, Jakarta.

Tag Archives: art

Apart from being visually spectacular, what makes this piece very interesting is the sound that accompanies it. Listen to the song carefully. Think you’re hearing Teletubbies gibberish? Nope. Those sounds are actually the unique syllabic sounds of the Japanese language.

This musical composition was made by recording 6 natural voice vocal tracks from singer Luschka and selecting lyrics with Japanese syllabic combinations which afforded expression. The track comprises words which themselves are meaningless, but carefully combining syllables and their respective unique resonances ensured highly musical peaks and troughs.

A throwback post here. As the title suggests, these photos were taken in 2009 but I never did have the chance to put them up.

While staying in Sydney for a while, I took a liking for coastal walks. The activity took a special significance when I experienced Sculptures by the Sea, an annual outdoor exhibit featuring the works of Australian and international artists. Stunning works of art plus breathtaking views is a winning combination for me and I thoroughly enjoyed gawking at everything. The whole walk spanned Tamarama to Bondi and involved climbing stairs and steep cliffs but it was all worth it.

My only wish was that I had a better camera with me. All I had was my Nokia N73 which unfortunately had a busted battery. Nevertheless, I plan to hit Sydney again so maybe it can be timed to November when Sculptures by the Sea bless the coasts with its beauty once more.

I came across this video two days ago yet it in my mind, it still lingers.

What an engaging presentation by artist Rilla Alexander. She spoke with passion and in a very engaging manner. Furthermore, the visuals she used were fascinating. But the thing that drew me the most was her message.

She spoke gospel truth to me.

Her talk reminded me of all those times when I failed to translate ideas to action, of dreams that stayed dreams because I never took the first step in making them a reality. Sometimes, I do manage to take a shot at something but end up prioritizing another. Distractions abound and excuses are aplenty. And so the dream slinks deeper and deeper into the backseat until it becomes a loving memory, if not a faint wisp.

Then there is also this debilitating affliction called “self-doubt”. Rilla was right in describing it as ‘crippling’. Self-doubt shatters our ability to move forward via the extreme weight of our insecurities. But as Rilla also stressed, the key is to never give up and to keep on believing in one’s self.

“But I don’t give up. I don’t abandon this one, I don’t cripple it with self-doubt. I just keep working. I work so hard that I’m prepared to defend it. But I still do listen to the feedback that other people give me, and I make changes depending on the critique. Actually sharing is part of the process, and I don’t even need to get feedback from people, because it’s how I feel. If I know that I’m not 100% proud, it means that there’s something I can still fix.”

I will have a book published in time. And who knows, if I worked hard enough, perhaps the Rilla Alexander would even illustrate it. All in due time.

Take things away until you cry. Accept most things, and reject most of your initial ideas. Print it out, chop it up, put it back together. When you’re aimlessly pushing things around on a computer screen, print it out and push it around in real space. Change contexts when you’re stuck. Draw wrong-handed and upside down and backwards. Find a good seat outside.